Chapter 18
I stepped inside to find that I'd stepped into a madhouse. Jean and Willy were loudly arguing with Andy about whether Andy should go to town. Ted Orr, the Mountie, was trying to calm them down. For once Lisa-Marie was quiet, she looked at me, then just shrugged her shoulders as if she gave up. I took the babble for about ten seconds then I bellowed.
"HEY! Everyone shut up for a minute."
To my surprise, everyone did, even the Mountie.
"Now that we have quiet, let's all realise that Andy is a grown woman and has a mind of her own. Andy just what do you want to do?"
"I don't know." She said quietly, wringing her hands. "I just made the offer to go in to the hospital with Jean to help her look after Aunt Mattie and they both went nuts on me."
I looked at Jean and raised my eyebrows, asking her opinion.
"There isn't anything Andy can do." Jean said shortly. "Besides, we should get going. Constable Orr needs to go back to town and I should go with him."
I turned my eyes to Willy.
"Andy has just come home from the hospital herself and Jean can do anything that needs to be done." He said emphatically.
"Okay." Andy sighed. "I'm outvoted."
"Andrea, I've been trying to break into this conversation to tell you that I radioed the snow plow and he's going to clear the road to the Granger's farm next so they can get into town." The Mountie said quietly. "In case the phones short out again, he's going to stop at their house and offer to give either your Mom or your Dad a ride to town himself. He can't waste time though, he has to get back to plowing the main roads as soon as he can."
I understood instantly. The plow was simply going around the roads in a square, out on our road, north the two miles to the road past the Granger's and then back to the main road.
"Ted, it's only six miles, can't you go that far extra?" I asked the Mountie. "Jean could try the phone from here and . . ."
"Well, I'm not supposed to be a taxi service." He sounded reluctant.
"Oh come on, Ted! This is an emergency."
"I'm already short of gas in the car."
"You and I know the answer to that problem." I smiled. "I'll tell you what, I've got a five-gallon plastic jerry can in the implement shed. I'll fill it with gas, then you can put it in the trunk, just in case you need it. Next week, when I'm in town, I'll drop by the police station and pick up the can."
"Well, I could do that, I guess." He said unenthusiastically.
"Fine." I was feeling slightly exasperated. "Willy, could you get that for me please? Oh, and while you're in the equipment shed, could you check to see if I plugged in the tractor when we put it away? I don't want the fuel to jell from the cold."
"Sure, I can help the constable deal with the gas and check the tractor too. Then I should get home. Dad could sure use my help right now with those stupid sheep." Willy looked at Jean.
"Don't you dare go without a hug." She said sharply.
He just grinned and held out his arms.
The rest of us tried to be polite and talk about something else as she kissed him goodbye. It wasn't long before Willy did up his coat to go outside, wishing us all good afternoon as he left. The Mountie went out along with him.
"Jean, why don't you call your folks and find out if they do want to go to town right now? Perhaps your Dad wil want to take the pickup to town himself, then the cop doesn't even need to go there and he could take you straight to town."
She just nodded and moved to the phone. I could tell she got through, but by then I was trying to wrap both Lisa-Marie and Andy in a three-way hug. I didn't pay much attention to Jean until I heard her slam the phone down and swear loudly.
"Fuck!"
Both of the girls and I could only stare at her in surprise.
"That fucking man!" She spoke so loudly that she was almost shouting. "Some day I'm going to kick him where it really hurts."
"What's wrong, Jean?" Andy asked quietly.
"It's Daddy. His own mother is on her way to the hospital, but he refuses to go to town in a blizzard. On top of that, because he might need Mom to help him pull a damn early calf, he won't let her go either." She was almost screaming. "Of all the chicken shit little pricks, he takes the cake. I think he'd like Grandma to die, then he could sell out so he could go sit on his ass and drink beer whenever he wanted, which would probably be all damn day."
I'd never heard anyone say anything about her father before and I didn't know him, so I was totally surprised. Andy moved to try to calm her down and I decided I needed to be somewhere else so they could talk freely. However as I began to move toward the stairs, Lisa-Marie caught my eye and gestured toward the back porch with a nod of her head.
"What's up?" I asked when we were alone, keeping my voice low.
"I'm worried about Jean." She looked at me almost pleadingly.
"Well, all we can do is offer support." I frowned, not certain what she was meaning.
"No, I mean when she's going to town with that cop. Andy really doesn't trust him to be alone with her."
"Oh, come on, he's a cop." I protested. "I think he's just young and probably made a mistake at that dance Andy was talking about."
"Well, he is fascinated with Andy. His eyes follow her all over." She sighed.
"Do you suppose it's a case of infatuation?"
"I don't know, but she's really worried that he might bother Jean."
"You mean today, on the way to town?"
Lisa-Marie nodded her head, then she moved closer to me and hugged me gently, her eyes looking up at me pleadingly. "I think I know a way to make her feel better about the idea, but I don't think you'll like it."
"What's your idea?" I sighed, knowing that I probably wouldn't like it, but at the same time, knowing that Lisa-Marie could talk me into anything if she wanted it badly enough.
"Well, I really like the old lady myself and I like Jean a lot. I don't think Jean should have to be alone at the hospital though." Her eyes took on the 'helpless puppy' look that I'd always found irresistible. "Since Andy needs to rest more and since you'll be here in case she needs anything, I was thinking that . . ." She hesitated. "Well maybe, I could go and help Jean for a day or so?"
"Oh." I just stared at her in surprise, then I realised something that we needed to consider. "Wait a minute, then Andy and I would be here all alone."
"So what?" She smiled. "Andy trusts you and I trust you."
"Yeah, but do I trust Andy and for that matter, do I trust myself?"
"Oh, you silly ass. You're worried about the two of you getting physical if I'm not here, aren't you?" She actually laughed. "Ain't gonna happen. Even if she was helping me tease you about having kids, all she really wants is a bit of attention. Right now the last thing on Andy's mind is screwing anyone. I think she's still pretty sore, even if she makes light of it, and I know you'd never force yourself on anyone."
"Oh, Woman, you just don't understand." I sighed. "Andy needs to be comforted right now. After today, she needs hugs and cuddles more than ever. She certainly can't sleep alone and we've managed to get her to accept that we sleep nude, so she does too. Even if nothing happens, I'm a man. If I'm in bed with a naked woman, my body is going to react. I can't help it. If I'm cuddling her and I get an erection, what's she going to think?"
"Oh, Tom, I know all that and she does too. She isn't going to get upset if you get a hard-on. Actually, she'll take it as a compliment." Lisa-Marie sighed. "You worry too much."
I just threw my hands in the air and shook my head at her as I sighed deeply. "Are you trying to drive me nuts?"
She stepped closer and wrapped me in her arms, then looked up at me."Do you really feel that uncomfortable about being alone with her?"
"I have to admit that I like Andy a lot. But, I love you!" I growled and hugged her tightly. "I admire her because she's had it tough, but she just doesn't give up. On top of that, she's cute as a button and damn near as sexy as you are."
"You've got a woody." She grinned and ground her body against me, letting me know I couldn't argue.
"Of course I've got a woody." I growled again. "We're discussing two very sexy women, you and Andy. Like I told you, I'm a man, I react. It's a purely physical thing."
"Not all that pure." She sighed. "Now I think I've got another reason to leave you two alone for a couple of days."
"What?"
"I know I'm not going to lose you." She looked serious. "I think you need to know it too."
"I don't understand what you're saying."
"What I'm saying is the fact that I've known you for so long that I know how you think. I know you love me now and no matter how you grow to feel about someone else, I know that you'll still love me." She stood on her tiptoes and kissed me lightly. "Even if you did anything with her, I know you'd still be mine first and foremost."
"Well, yeah, but . . ."
"Whoa." She interrupted me by pressing a finger to my lips. "As you're always saying, 'No buts.' I just know what I believe, okay?"
"So you think that you and I will still be okay, even though you won't be here and I'll be sleeping in the same bed with a pretty woman like Andy?"
"Unh huh." She grinned.
"Even if we're nude?"
"Oh, you ass." She broke into a short laugh, then kissed me again. "Yes, Tom, even if you sleep with her in the same bed and you're both nude."
"I hope you're right." I sighed, then I know I frowned. "Well, aside from that, what about the neighbours? What will they think if you leave Andy and me here while you go to town for two or three days?"
"Who gives a damn?" She frowned back at me. "Since when do you care so much about what others think of you?"
"Since we'll be living here for the rest of our lives." I sighed, then couldn't help smiling at her frown. "Before we say much more, let's go find out what Jean and Andy think about the idea of you going to town, okay?"
"But . . ." She began to protest, but I held up my hand as if to silence her.
"No, I won't say what I think until you find out what they say." I said stubbornly.
As we walked into the kitchen, Jean was berating Andy. "You're being silly." She said loudly. "He's a cop, for cripes sake."
"Jean, I'm telling you, Freddy was right there and the cop was still hitting on me. I don't trust him." Andy argued.
"Excuse me." Lisa-Marie interrupted. "Andy, we all think you need to take it easy. You can't take the risk of getting worn down by this sort of thing after what you've been through, but I agree that someone should be with Jean. Would you feel better if I went along with her? Tom would still be here with you, so you wouldn't be alone. He hasn't indicated one way or the other exactly what he thinks, but I think he wants both of your opinions so he can make up his mind."
Both Andy and Jean simply stared at her for a second, then they turned toward me and both of them started to speak at once. Andy was all for the idea, but Jean was putting up some argument about it. Lisa-Marie put up both hands to stop the flow of words, then she turned toward me.
"Well, Tom? Did you want to ask them anything special?" She asked and she winked.
"Well, I was wondering why Jean didn't like the idea?"
"I just don't think I need help is all." Jean sighed. "If you think it's a good idea, I know I'd like the company, but gosh, I don't think I need it."
"Have you ever sat in the hospital with someone?" Lisa-Marie asked.
"Umm, no. Why?"
"It's very tiring, yet at the same time, it's very boring." I answered, then I sighed. "If you have company, even for a little while, it really helps."
"You mean you think I should agree to have Lisa-Marie come along with me?"
"No, I'm leaving it up to the three of you. However, is that what you're planning on wearing?" She was still dressed for church and it really didn't look like the sort of thing to sit in for a long time and still be comfortable. "I'm sure that between Lisa-Marie and Andy, they could find you something more suitable to wear while you sit around for hours."
"Then I'm going with you." Lisa-Marie said emphatically. "If that's okay with you?"
When Jean nodded slowly, Lisa-Marie grabbed her by the hand and ran upstairs. Then I was left alone with Andy. She crossed her arms just under her breasts and looked me in the eye.
"So, this was Lisa-Marie's idea, wasn't it?"
"Unh huh." I nodded
"You argued against the idea of course?"
"Yep."
"But, it's going to be just you and me here tonight then?"
"Yep."
"This could be interesting."
"Yep."
She sighed. "You aren't helping a bit."
"Nope, I don't suppose I am." I held out my arms and she seemed to flow into them. "I know you still need to be hugged though."
"Even tonight?" She whispered.
"Especially tonight, but I'm not promising anything more than hugs." I said quietly so no one else could hear even if anyone had been listening.
"I guess we shouldn't be hugging as tight as this when Jean comes downstairs, huh?" She leaned back slightly in my arms.
"I don't think it matters." I sighed. "I think this is going to shoot your reputation all to hell, just because someone is bound to start a rumour of some sort about it."
"My reputation is already shot, but what about your reputation?" She asked. "You and Lisa-Marie are the new people around here; don't you think you'll be on the short end of the gossip column?"
Just then there was a knock on the door and as I moved to answer it, Andy quickly moved away to run upstairs. It was the RCMP constable at the door and I invited him inside to warm up again because he looked cold.
"Thanks, I am a bit chilled, but I've got the car warming up now." He looked a bit sheepish as he grinned at me. "We couldn't find that gas can you were talking about, so Willy talked me into just filling up with your gas. I'm not sure how I'll go about paying you back for it, but I'll find a way."
"Forget it, Ted." I laughed at his discomfort. "The RCMP has always treated me fairly, just call this a repayment of favours done in the past by others in the force. However, since you went outside, there have been a couple of changes."
"Oh, what's happened?" He frowned.
"Well, for one thing, you don't have to go around by Jean's parents. Her father simply refuses to leave the farm right now."
He frowned and muttered something under his breath, but I didn't catch what it was.
"He probably has a reason, Ted. I'm not about to condemn him until I actually find out for myself why he's acting this way."
He looked at me and shook his head slowly from side to side. "You are just too much. Do you always give everyone the benefit of the doubt?"
"Most of the time." I nodded, then shrugged. "Of course, when I'm wrong, that can really screw things up and then I get annoyed. However, to get back to what we were discussing, I hope you won't mind taking two passengers with you to the hospital."
"That's fine." He shrugged his shoulders. "One more passenger won't make any difference. Did Andy talk you into letting her go along with Jean?"
"Oh no. Andy shouldn't be under too much stress right now." I shook my head. "No, it's Lisa-Marie who talked me into the idea that Jean could use company, so in a way you can just write the cost of the gasoline off as taxi charges."
"Look, it's not really my business, but does Andy have a problem?" He asked quietly.
I glanced around to make sure no one could hear me, then nodded. "You knew that Fred got her pregnant, didn't you?"
"I heard about it, yes, but I wasn't sure if the rumour was true."
"Yeah, it was." I sighed. "Unfortunately she lost the baby and that's not easy for any woman."
"Oh shit." He shook his head. "I like that young woman."
"Yeah, we all know."
He lifted his head and stared at me.
"Well, you don't exactly hide it." I sighed. "In fact if anything, you might be coming on a bit too strong and making her uncomfortable."
He was looking at me in surprise when our conversation was broken up by Lisa-Marie and Jean coming down from upstairs. Lisa-Marie was carrying an overnight bag and Jean had changed into different clothes more suited to the weather.
"Hey, Officer Ted, can I catch a ride with you too?" Lisa-Marie said instantly, then dropped the bag and wrapped me in her arms.
"Um, sure." He glanced past them at the stairs, but I managed to catch his eye and shake my head slightly.
Lisa-Marie must have caught on.
"Thanks Ted."She pulled back from me slightly so she could talk to him. "Oh, Andy asked me to say goodbye to you. She isn't feeling too perky and she's resting."
"I'm sorry to hear that. We should get going soon so we can get to town before the roads drift too badly. I'll take this out to the squad car while you ladies say goodbye." He frowned, then picked up the overnight bag and looked at me. "I'll see you, Tom. Please tell Andy so long would you?"
"Sure." I answered as he went out the door.
"Did you say something to him about Andy?" Lisa-Marie demanded.
"Unh huh." I nodded. "I told him he was coming on to her too strong."
"Oh, you sweetheart."
She smiled up at me, then suddenly I was being kissed and hugged as if she wasn't going to see her ever again. I didn't mind at all, in fact I was probably kissing her just as heartily.
"Unnch uh." Jean cleared her throat. "Jeez, Lisa-Marie, he isn't going to disappear and we should get going."
"Spoil sport." Lisa-Marie broke the kiss and grinned at her. "You just want a hug from him too."
"No, but I do want to get to town." Jean snapped as she jammed on her boots and reached for the door handle.
"Okay, Jean. I'll be right with you." Lisa-Marie was stilling holding me, but as soon as Jean had gone through the door, she hugged me lightly, then pulled back. "Andy is upset with me, so do me a favour? Please don't get her pissed off with you too."
"What did you do?" I asked as she headed for the door herself.
"Ask Andy, after she's had time to cool down a bit." She said as she opened the door, then blew me a kiss before closing it behind her.
By the time I'd pulled on a coat and my boots, then hurried outside, the cop car was already driving out of the yard. I was left wondering just what she'd done. I turned back and closed the door with a deep sigh.
"Dang! What's that stupid little bitch done now?" I muttered to myself as I kicked off my boots and hung up my coat again.
"She pissed me off, that's what." Andy grouched from behind me, then she started to chuckle when I jumped from the surprise of hearing her so close.
"Jeez, woman. You might as well shoot a man as scare him to death." I growled, then couldn't help grinning at the look on her face. "Sorry, I'm not really angry."
She sighed, then nodded. "Neither am I. Well, not now, but I sure was until I thought about it. Only when I came hurrying down to talk to Lisa-Marie, she was already gone."
"I take it she said something that set you off?"
"Yeah, and did something too, but I'm not sure I want to talk about that right now." Then she sighed.
I didn't know what to say, so I was going to have a cup of coffee just to have something to do, then I glanced at the clock.
"Oh wow, where did the day go?" I said in surprise "I didn't realise how late it was. I need to do the chores and check the animals before it gets dark."
"Just wait a few minutes and I'll come with you, I need to start our supper cooking first."
"You don't have to come outside to help with the chores." I protested.
"Well, I want to help." She smiled. "If I'm going to be living here, I want to be able to pull my weight both inside and outside the house. After all, it's only fair."
"Yes, but you're still recuperating and there really isn't that much to do tonight."
"I know I have to take it easy, but I'm not going to get better by sitting on my butt. It's not like I'm going to do anything heavy. Besides, you know as well as I do that two people working together can get things done a lot faster than one guy on his own." She said stubbornly.
The last thing I wanted was an argument, so I simply walked toward her and wrapped her in my arms, hugging her gently. She snuggled for a moment, then shifted until her face looked up at mine and she smiled. Lifting to her tiptoes, her lips met mine for a second, then she pressed her hands against my chest.
"Even though I love it, this is not helping get things done." She grinned, her eyes sparkling. "Perhaps we can do this later?"
I just chuckled as I sighed and let her slip out of my arms. Then we both hurried as I got the milk pail and filled it with water to wash the cow's udder before milking. Meanwhile she slipped some sort of meal in the oven. She must have had everything prepared because I didn't have to wait long before we were both getting dressed to go out in the cold.
It was cold and the wind was whipping the snow into our faces as we rushed to the barn. As I opened the door and turned on the lights, both of the old plow horses nickered a greeting, making Andy chuckle. I set the milk bucket down and reached for the manure fork, but she stepped in front of me and raised her arms.
"Hug please." She smiled.
I didn't know why she felt she wanted a hug, but I wasn't going to argue at the moment, so I took the time to wrap her in my arms. She managed to sneak in a short kiss, then grinned as she pulled back.
"Remember before, when you were telling Lisa-Marie and me about Silas and those two horses?" She asked.
"Umm, yeah?" I suppose I had a slight frown on my face, wondering what she meant.
"Just checking." She giggled, then changed the subject back to work. "Will you let me milk the cow tonight?"
"I guess, but I should clean up the gutter first." I agreed.
"Okay, I'll check the chickens feed and water, then get any eggs while you do that."
Working with Andy was almost like working with Willy, only with my role reversed, but then I suppose that was natural since they'd worked together for so many years. Andy checked the chicken's feeders and their water supply while she was collecting the eggs. At the same time, I mucked out the cow's stall and the gutter, then spread a bit of fresh bedding.
As soon as I was done with the bedding and feed for the milk cow, Andy was there to wash down the cow's udder and begin milking. While she did that, I went ahead and scooped out the worst of the manure in each animal's stall or pen and spread more bedding. Then I moved on and began doling out ground grain and fresh hay to every animal, checking their individual water supply each time. It only took a few minutes before I was done feeding and caring for all the animals in the barn. With all of them cared for, I left Andy doing the milking while I went outside to check on the beef cattle.
Stepping out the back door of the barn and into the cold was actually a shock because I was facing the wind and the driving snow felt like ice pellets when it hit your skin. I had to shield my face as I walked the short distance to the partial protection of the cattle shelters. It was so cold that in seconds I was wishing was back inside, but I had a job to do.
All of the cattle were lying quietly well back under the overhang of the shelters, so they were protected from the worst of the storm. There wasn't much I could do to help them and anything I did right now might actually disturb them. Instead, I just checked to see that they all seemed to be settled and as comfortable as they could be considering the weather. I knew there was little chance of them getting up to feed or drink, but I checked their feed bins and made sure that the heaters were keeping the automatic waterers thawed.
Since there weren't any problems, I walked back toward the barn, literally leaning back against the wind and driving snow as it struck my back. There was some reduced effect of the cold wind near the barn, yet just opening the barn door and stepping inside was a relief from the frigid temperature. However the wind seemed to fight against me as I shut the door again and it took a few seconds to get it to latch properly.
When I turned, I couldn't see Andy at first. I did see the bucket of milk hanging near the door and although it felt warm in the barn, I could still see the vapour rising from the warm milk condensing in the air above the bucket. I wondered if Andy had climbed into the barn loft, but I couldn't hear her moving around up there either.
"Brrrr." Andy complained. "The draught from the door is darn chilly."
I followed the sound of her voice and realised that she was sitting on the old mare's back, leaning forward so she wouldn't hit the ceiling.
"What are you doing up there?" I stared up at her in surprise.
"Just checking to see how wide her back really is." She grinned down at me.
"But why?"
"Well, you said you wanted to have your kids ride on her back. I was just checking to see if they'd be able to do it." She seemed embarrassed. "I didn't expect you to be back so soon."
"Well, I did all the work out there earlier so I just had to check everything, but there's nothing I can do right now to improve things. Is there anything left to do in here?"
"Ump um." She grunted, as she slid down from the old mares back then casually moved to face me, then sighed softly. "I guess we're all done in here."
"You don't sound like you want to be finished." I grinned at her.
"Umm, well, caring for animals takes your attention away from other things." She looked at me almost sadly.
"Unh huh, I understand." I lifted an arm and set it on her shoulder, pulling gently to see if she wanted a hug.
She did. As she snuggled against my chest, she sighed softly, her arms slowly creeping around my body to hold me tight. Since both of us were dressed in such heavy clothing, I wouldn't have thought that I'd find her hug to be erotic, but in only a few seconds I was getting an erection.
She felt it! I know she did because she pressed her hips against me and gave them a little grind, then bent backward slightly at the waist to smile at me.
"I'm sorry, Tom, but the doctor said no penetration for a few days, not until I heal a bit." She whispered calmly, then sighed. "It's too bad too, especially since Lisa-Marie is away and we're here alone."
All I could do was stare at her because I didn't know what to say.
"Actually though, I'm not really in the mood right now." She continued as her head moved back to snuggle against my shoulder for a few seconds then with a sigh she suddenly pulled away from me.
"What else do we need to do before we can leave the stock for the night?" When I shook my head, she grabbed my hand and pulled. "Lets go then. I'm getting cold and hungry."
Once we opened the door and felt the wind and snow, we hurried toward the house. The yard light had come on already and when I glanced up that direction, I saw that the falling snow was very fine and was being blown almost parallel to the ground. That meant the wind was blowing a lot harder than I'd thought. I knew that the roads would be impassable by now, even though they had just been plowed only an hour or two before.
Since I was carrying the bucket of milk in one hand and the basket of eggs in the other, Andy was able to get ahead, but she held the door open for me when I got there. The warmth that struck me as I stepped inside felt wonderful. Andy pushed past me, kicking off her winter boots and peeling off her coat hurriedly, then dashed for the stairs.
"I gotta pee bad." She squeaked out an excuse.
I couldn't help but grin at her discomfort, however once more I was reminded of the need for that darn second bathroom on the main floor.
"That's it." I growled as I washed my hands at the sink. "Next time I'm in town, I'm getting all the supplies I need to fix the whole damn thing, even if I have to do the work myself."
With that in mind, I grabbed the pail of milk and headed for the back porch to set up the separator, knowing that I needed to take care of separating the milk before it got too cold to separate well. By the time I was done separating the milk, Andy had supper on the table. It felt slightly strange to be sitting at the table eating with her and not having Lisa-Marie there too. For some reason, Andy was quiet and seemed to be thinking, so I hardly spoke out of respect for her silence. After we'd eaten, neither of us spoke much more than the bare necessities as we washed and dried the dishes, then cleaned and rinsed the bits and pieces from the separator.
Everything was put away and I was adding some large pieces of wood to the little wood-burning heater when Andy knelt by my side and leaned against me.
"You knew that the fireplace in the parlour was fixed up to be a heater too, didn't you?" She whispered.
"It is?" I asked. "Is that why it has a glass door on the front?"
"Umm hmm." She smiled. "It's rigged up to draw air from outside for the fire, but when there's a fire in the hearth it heats steel pipes inside the firebricks that draw the cool air from the room. The pipes warm the air as it rises inside them, then the warm air is split, part of it warms the room and part of it goes upstairs to warm the big bedroom and bathroom. My uncle Vern built it and I helped, so I know it works."
"Are you hinting that you'd like me to bring in some wood for a fire in the parlour?" I grinned at her.
"Please." She smiled. "Then we could snuggle on the couch and talk."
"Well, since you know so much about it, why don't you start a fire there and show me how it's done?"
"Can we do that tomorrow?"
"Why not tonight?"
"Because, I already have the fire started in there tonight." She grinned as she turned and walked away.
When I was done stoking up the little heater, I grabbed a few more pieces of wood and followed her into the room the Uncle Silas had called his parlour. Andy was already sitting on the old sofa that faced the fireplace with a light blanket pulled over her lap. Our two mugs of herbal tea were siting on the table.
"When did you get this all ready?" I asked after I put some wood on the fire, then moved to sit down beside her.
"Well, to be honest, Lisa-Marie and I did most of it earlier, when you were out looking after the cows. Of course I made the tea just now."
"So this is all Lisa-Marie's idea?"
"Well, not all her idea." Andy admitted with a deep sigh. "Can I snuggle up to you and just talk?"
"Sure, if that's what you want." I smiled.
"Umm." She sighed as I lifted an arm and put it over her shoulder, letting her lean against my chest. "This is nice."
Since I was leaned back into the corner of the sofa and was quite comfortable, I didn't argue.
"So what did you want to talk about?" I asked quietly.
"Oh, just about everything." She sighed.
For a moment we were both completely silent as we sat there sipping our mugs of tea, then she twisted to look up at me. "You remind me so much of Silas, yet at the same time, you're so different."
"People keep telling me that." I smiled at her and couldn't resist the impulse to reach out with my fingers and stroke her glossy hair away from where it had fallen across her forehead.
"That's because it's true." She snorted. "I really liked Silas, but not the same way I do you."
"You mean you wouldn't have laid here like this with Uncle Silas?" I grinned.
"No way!" She laughed. "He wouldn't have allowed me to show him that I cared. That's one way that you're different from him; you aren't afraid to show your feelings or to let others show you how they feel."
"Yeah, but he could still let you know how he felt." I sighed.
"Well, sometimes he did. At other times, he'd just walk away." She shrugged her shoulders.
We fell into silence, then after a few minutes, she sighed deeply.
"I wonder how Aunt Mattie is doing?" She whispered.
"I don't know and I refuse to worry about it right now."
"I wish I could get it out of my mind." She sighed, then turned to face me. "Could we talk about something else?"
"Sure, what do you have in mind?"
"Well, we could talk about us, the three of us, Lisa-Marie, you and me." She said quietly. "Lisa-Marie says she thinks that you think I'm nuts to want to live here with you."
"Yeah, I think I do." I sighed deeply. "You're a beautiful young woman that I care about deeply, and I just can't see that you living with us as part of our family is fair to you. You'd be throwing away so much."
"What would I be throwing away?"
"Well, family approval, neighbourhood approval, a wedding of your own, a man of your own, all that sort of thing."
"Okay, let's take those one at a time." She held up a hand and extended a finger. "First, forget my family. Daddy is a bossy old shit who is stuck in the last century and believes the bullshit that his church has been feeding him; for him, it's his way or the highway and I won't live my life that way. Remember, he threw me out of my home for not doing what he and his church wanted me to do with my life. Mom loves Daddy, so she has to try to see things his way, but she loves me too, so I know she wants me to be happy. She has trouble with the church too and she's talked with me about it a lot. But, she still listens to the bullshit first, before making up her own mind, so it makes things rough for her and for me. Willy is the only one who has any common sense and thinks about real life without all the religious dogma clouding his thinking. Don't forget, he's the one who brought me over here and he's the one who really cares about what I feel."
She paused, then held up a second finger. "As far as the neighbours are concerned, I simply don't care what they think any more. When they found out I was pregnant, a lot of them condemned me for being a loose woman. I never had a chance to defend myself or to tell the true story; they just listened to the rumours and added to them to make them worse, so they can go fuck themselves. The ones with an open mind at least listened to me and I'll bet they think my being here with you and Lisa-Marie is the best thing that could have happened to me."
Another finger lifted. "Third, I've never been a nut about weddings. I can't understand why anyone should spend so much money trying to impress others just because they want to live together. All the fancy dresses and big parties is about is status and that doesn't put a roof over your head or bread on the table. Why don't the people who want to live together just do it, move in with each other and save the money they'd waste on a wedding, then spend it on something useful?"
Another finger lifted and this time she smiled tentatively. "Fourth, I decided when I was in the hospital that I'm wasn't looking for just any man; I was looking for a man who was kind, considerate and thoughtful. I want a guy who puts others before himself, but isn't afraid to speak his mind or act on his convictions. Then on top of that, I'd like the guy to be a farmer not a city slicker and I'd like him to have a place of his own. The big problem for me was that I knew someone like that, but he was taken; he already had a woman."
"Now just a minute, I . . ." I started to say something, but she lifted a finger to my lips.
"Let me finish please." She said as she sat up, then turned to me. "I realised this morning that I wasn't looking for a man; I was looking for a family. You two fill the bill perfectly. You happen to be almost the exact opposite of my father and Lisa-Marie is almost as far from being like my Mom as it's possible to get. You two talk to each other, then make up your minds, and neither one of you screams or shouts. Both of you have all the character traits I want to be around. Well, except that sometimes Lisa-Marie is a bit impulsive and sometimes she makes me want to scream at her and ask her what the hell she thinks she's doing. About then I want to kick you in the butt too, because you let her push you around too much, but I'm fairly certain I can learn to keep my mouth shut and not interfere between you two."
She stood up and stepped away from the sofa, then turned and smiled. "This morning, waking up in bed with you and Lisa-Marie was great. Then teasing you later in the day was fun, but it didn't take long before I realised that neither of you knows me that well. Then all this other shit happened with Aunt Mattie and the cop and all that. So you and I are stuck here with each other and we might be snowed in for a day or two. Now, I have to ask you one question, okay?"
"Alright." I nodded.
"I promise, I won't jump your bones, but could I still sleep in your bed, with you?"
She looked so wistful and so vulnerable that I couldn't have turned her down if I'd had to. Instead of speaking, I just nodded. She grabbed my hand and pulled me to my feet, then headed toward the stairs.
"Whoa, I need to check things and close up for the night." I held back at the bottom of the stairs.
"You aren't going back outside are you?"
"No, but I want to check the airtight heater and double check that there are no doors or windows that are cracked open or letting in any draughts." I explained.
After adding another log to the heater and walking around the main floor of the house, I finally went upstairs with her. When we were in the bedroom, she paused and turned toward me.
"Just snuggles, okay? But, if your hands wander in your sleep, I won't mind."
I drew a deep breath and nodded slowly, but let my breath out in a loud sigh.
"What's wrong?" She asked instantly.
"Nothing except that my fiancée has gone to town and left me alone. On top of that, she left me with a beautiful woman in my bed and with orders to cuddle her every night. I sure as hell hope we don't get snowed in or I'm going to be one of the most frustrated men in Canada and you might not be as safe as you seem to think you are." I managed to hide my grin for a moment, but not long.
"Hmmph." She snorted, then stripped and hopped into bed.
I excused myself and went to the bathroom before joining her. She snuggled close and in moments she fell asleep, but I wasn't so lucky. I wasn't really comfortable with her bare skin against mine because I didn't have Lisa-Marie there to act as a brake for anything I did. I knew I was strong enough to hold myself back, but I certainly wasn't comfortable with the urges I was feeling. That wasn't what kept me awake though. Instead, as I listened to the howling wind and the snow beating on the window panes, my mind rehashed the happenings of the last few days, going over individual actions and conversations, wondering what others thought and what they meant by words they had said. I lay there for a long time, my mind in a turmoil as I held Andy's tender body close to mine and wondered exactly what I had gotten myself into.